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Radiant power of Hammond B3 fuels new CD from Mauri Sanchis' Organ Trio(Published: August 02, 2011)

August 2, 2011 (Madrid, Spain) Written by Robert Sutton. In the hands of Mauri Sanchis, the Hammond B3 organ comes alive. No longer is it simply a soulless instrument but a breathing, intensely active entity.

On his latest album, What Did You Expect?, Sanchis revives the ‘60s-‘70s heyday of the Hammond B3 organ, recalling the pioneering work of Booker T. & the M.G.'s, Jimmy Smith, and even Santana. "My first contact with the sound of the Hammond organ came when I began to be interested by rock and blues," Sanchis recalled. "From that moment on I searched for more and more organ music."

Credited to Mauri Sanchis' Organ Trio, What Did You Expect? packs quite a wallop for an album fueled by organ, guitar, and drums. Much of that power emanates from Sanchis' Hammond with its colorful, radiant personality. On "The Ninja," Sanchis' funky organ shakes the shack with infectious energy; fuzzy guitar and tumbling drums heighten its rhythmic attack. Sanchis revealed that his phenomenal playing was not the result of a formal education. "I just taught myself from listening to albums," Sanchis revealed. "Although there are more and more organists in Spain since I released my first album in 2003, there was nobody at the time that I could be learning from, unfortunately."

One of the record's highlights is its explosive finále, "Guess What!" Opening up with a breezy Steely Dan-esque groove, the song evolves into a sweltering jam as the drums hit breakneck speed and Sanchis' keyboards swirl and soar.

To Sanchis, each album enables him to flip over a different side of the Hammond B3 organ while remaining consistent with his previous efforts. "I try to put the Hammond sound through very different approaches on every single record, and I try to put my composing and production skills in a different way on each CD," Sanchis explained. "My first album was considered smooth jazz, my second is funk jazz, my third was soul, and my fourth is a lot more alternative and aggressive. Nevertheless, the reviews considered my style identifiable on all of them, and that is most important thing for me."